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Duty declined to comment, but her attorney, Clark Richards, said the filing of the petition by Hobbs allows Duty to defend herself in court. “(She) looks forward to presenting her case in court,” he said.

Brian Bishop, an attorney who filed the original lawsuit on behalf of Georgetown residents Elizabeth Latham Scheleder and Thomas Joseph Madden, said he supports Hobbs’ petition and has offered to provide assistance for the suit to be successful.

“My clients’ sole focus and desire is removing Duty as district attorney as soon as possible,” Bishop said Wednesday by email. “We support everything the county attorney can do (either through joining our lawsuit or filing a separate lawsuit) that brings about that result.”

The suit asks that a district judge temporarily suspend Duty and appoint another person to serve as district attorney until Shawn Dick, who beat Duty in the Republican primary in March, takes office in January.

An exhibit included in the petition lists a possible trial to begin Oct. 10.

Hobbs had said state law prohibited him from being involved in the lawsuit until a judge issues a citation against Duty in the case. The citation would force Duty to appear in court. But Judge John Dietz, who was appointed to rule in the lawsuit, disagreed with Hobbs, saying he could not issue a citation until Hobbs took some form of action in the case.

Bishop said distrust in the district attorney’s office makes it difficult for cases to move through the legal system. Mike Gleason, assistant chief deputy of the Williamson County sheriff’s office, told county commissioners last week that a state of flux at the district attorney’s office is causing fewer accused felons to agree on plea deals, leading to a more crowded jail.

“It is my understanding that the (county) jail population has dramatically increased since March (when we understand Duty stopped working) and is currently at its highest level in history,” Bishop said. “That increased jail population entails tremendous cost to (the county) that would be avoidable if the DA’s office was functional.”

Hobbs’ petition states Duty was incompetent and engaged in official misconduct by failing to timely disclose evidence in a criminal case for the capital murder of Jessika Kalahar. Crispin Harmel is accused of strangling Kalaher in 2009 after following her out of a Wal-Mart in Cedar Park.

The petition states that Duty intentionally withheld time stamps included in a video of Harmel leaving Wal-Mart. It also notes Duty’s violation of a gag order in the same case, which led to a district judge finding her guilty of contempt and spending several days in jail.

Duty’s actions during the Harmel case also led to the Commission for Lawyer Discipline giving her a probated sentence for violating several state rules of professional conduct, the lawsuit states.